FiiO E17

Great little amp that improvs the sound on my IE80's no end. I use it everyday for commuting and have no hesitation recommending for out of home use. Bought in the UK from Amazon for £100

I wanted a device with full EQ adjustments and had expected this to be it.
Unfortunately there is no mid range adjustment.
The versatility and features of the E17 are impressive.

I purchased this-- because for around $150 bucks-- how could I pass?  
 
My needs were to provide a way to get audio out of my work computer and drive larger headphones, while stopping my chair from rolling over the headphone cables.  My computer is set on the floor-- and running a headphone cable out of the computer proved hazardous to the cables.  
 
I'm driving a bunch of different headphones-- Grado 225, UERMs, ATH-50s-- for the purposes of this analysis-- I used the UERMs.
 
Okay- the good-- SPDIF, Optical, line, you name it-- you can source it as an input on the Fiio E17.  
 
The E17 easily drives all the above models of headphones.  
 
Sound is decent.  An improvement over any sound card to be sure.  But compared with the Pico Slim, the bass isn't as tight-- the Pico has a great controlled slam, and the transients are not as evident on the E17.  The E17 lacks the airy quality and overall warmth of the Pico Slim-- which is a rich sounding amp.  Of course the Pico is a one-trick pony-- and costs twice as much.  
 
The digital volume is a bit of a downer, but contrary to some-- I like the input control.  The menus are fairly straightforward-- and I can navigate with ease.  It's a clean design.
 
For $150 dollars-- there's not much to complain about.  This is a great do-it-all box, and I use it more than the Pico because it solves more problems with it's USB input and Ginsu-like compatibility.  On pure sound, however-- there's better out there.
 
 
 
 
 
 

I just wanted to touch on the basics with the pros and cons listed here and give it the ratings it deserves.  Briefly I will say that this thing is an absolute bargain for what it can do and the build quality is absolutely superb.  It's one of those products that you're happy you purchased.  The only weak spot I've found in this device is the bass EQ.  I prefer the bass EQ on the E11 over the E17 as it has more of a natural curve to it where the E17 seems to be a bit more abrupt.  Even with that, this is still an outstanding amplifier.  To get all my thoughts, check out my written and video reviews here:
 
http://www.headphonereviewhq.com/reviews/fiio-e17-review/

I got Fiio e17 as a gift for my brother but i already own a Arcam rPAC so i got to compare the two! Fiio is about 50 dollars cheaper so if you got an extra 50 to spend on a dac/amp i'd say go for the Arcam! I found that it sounded more full, had a greater punch better detailed and overall was more musical.

This is my first amp. I used combo amp  connecting to my sound card before. This one build well and I used it for IPC and PC/laptop. As the others said, it is very convenient as a usb dac without extra driver hunting. Also, the sound is very clear if the source is good enough.
Used it for E4c, DT1350.

This thing is simply amazing.

What can I say, I started my headphone audio journey with an E7+E9 combo.

Now let me add that I have been into audio for a long time mostly cars and home.
Butter amps and focal speakers, so we aren't talking beginner here.
I do know what I like the sound of, and understand that audio is very personal.
What I like may not be what you like. In saying that.
Changing from the E7 to the E9 is like cleaning a dirty record, everything cleans up and the sound far more detailed. By all means this is not a top end amp but performs very well.

The E17 is a great starting point but it makes the next step a big jump in price to make it worth your while.

Hope to get usb sound support for android ... very nice if your 3,5 mm jack is broken or faulty. No more crackeling and hissing from bad connect.

The Fiio E17 works excellent together with my older Dell laptop. Lots of sound improvement. Connecting to a Tablet with the provided 3,5 to 3,5 cable is messy. No sound improvement. I hope the ICS android update will enable the USB host mode on my tablet. More power and hopefully better sound.

I had a Samsung tab before and I think the soundchip was better then that used in the Toshiba Thrive. Speakers in the Toshiba are very cheap.

The amp gives lots of power to my 250 Ohm headphones .... to drive a 600 Ohm ? Definitly the Beyerdynamic T-70 needs amping to reach a full listening experience. Bass is deep & flawless when you give it more volume.

I was looking for a new sound card after I was left wanting with my 3 year old Creative XFI Music.
 
I was doing alot of reading about other various sound cards like the Asus St/Creative XFI but wasn't satisfied with the research.
 
Then I started to see what other alternatives there was so I was reading up on external dacs/amps.
 
I stumbled on to something, something that I never really heard about especially within my computer circles. Fiio is a company supposedly makes decent sound for a decent price. So I read on.
 
So Fiio had me hooked and I was really interested, I was trying to find out more about these things. I wanted to know if there was anyone out there who could tell me if they went in this direction and was satisfied.
 
I couldn't find much that I could relate to, so I took the plunge!
 
I ordered mine through ebay, a local supplier had literally just come in.
 
In the two day wait I was still reading up on the Fiio E17 and admittedly still nervous at my purchase.
 
On the second day of ordering I had come home from work and found a package on the kitchen table, nerves were gone and a sea of excitement washed over me like it was my birthday or like christmas!
 
I took my time unboxing it and took a deep breath and installed the Fiio.
 
With everything connected I switched on my PC and waited for Windows to load.
 
Still abit nervous I stared at the screen as windows booted up, then there it was...'Windows detects new device, installing drivers'...omg 'will it?!'...'Device successfully installed, Fiio E17 detected!'. Houston we have lift off!
 
I was very happy that even such a little step as windows detecting it and installed without having to go online to grab a driver or stick in a CD made me sure and proud of this product!
 
Ok, so I change my settings for the computer to use the Fiio and now it was time to see what this little black box can do! Just before playing any music I thought 'Will this sound any better than my Xtreme Music', I mean the XFI Xtreme was a great card right?
 
Well all I can say was OMG! I played FLAC version of Whitney Houston 'I have nothing'. I remember I was saying comments (Out loud) 'The sound is amzaing', 'It's so clear!'.
 
I was absolutely engulfed in the music, it wasn't hiding or lacking in anyway it was right there pouring through my AT AD700's like liquid, saucy, hot fudge carmel sundee.
 
I just felt great after my first sitting with the Fiio, it met the expectations of what had read and most importantly it met my expectations. I was blowin away by the Fiio and I made me think what the hell have I been doing all this time with a Creative XFI Xtreme, I mean seriously I was really getting angry at Creative for hyping up and releasing these 'poor' sound cards. But then i realized I was be angry at myself for perhaps not looking outside the square abit, I mean if everyone stopped buying Creative and bought something else then maybe Creative might go back to the drawing board and build something really decent. Anyway I digress.
 
Last point I want to put out there to any PC owner who was in the same position as me. Yes I game with this thing! And you know what? It does it well and I don't miss the Xtreme Music at all! I never used the CMSS 3d function and I mainly ran the thing in 'Entertainment' mode. The Fiio sounds fantastic in games and I have not had one single crash or sound problem with it! I was really surprised when I first played BF3 that the sound was awesome, twice as better than the Xtreme Music!
 
Ok that is it for me, I've had the Fiio for over a month now and it has settled in fine! The second night I had it, I pulled out the Xtreme Music and 'Dismantled' all Creatives bloatware crap/drivers. Sound wise my sound system/PC is complete! Search is over!
 
Thank you!

This is going to be short, It does everything it needs too with a good DAC and many features. Some of my headphone's need quick EQ'ing or navigation and this is pretty finicky. It is a solid device but there is some quality problems such as a rattle that seems to be attributed to the LO Bypass switch and also some..not as tightly made spots you spot every now and then. This may not be the greatest amp for $150 or greatest DAC for $150...but guess what? It does them both with extra features and what not for such a price